AIP Carrot and Sweet Potato “Chili”

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One of the meals I really tend to miss on the autoimmune protocol is a warming bowl of chili. Unfortunately, traditional chili is not very autoimmune protocol friendly, being chock full of nightshades, beans, and dairy. It never occurred to me until recently that I could mimic the texture of tomatoes with carrots and sweet potatoes.

This recipe is nothing like a traditional chili, since it doesn’t have any of the characteristic nightshade and seed spices. It does fit the bill well enough though, and I have found myself making it more often when the weather is cold and I’d like to batch cook something for the week — which is a lot lately, since it is still rainy and cold in Seattle and I have been holed up putting the finishing touches on the cookbook.

Heat your cooking fat in the bottom of a heavy-bottomed pot. Add the onion and cook for a few minutes, until translucent. Add the garlic and thyme and cook for another couple of minutes, stirring.

Add the carrots and sweet potatoes and cook for 5 minutes, or until gently browned. Add the bone broth and sea salt and bring to a boil, cover and then simmer for 20 minutes, until the vegetables are soft.

Meanwhile, cook the ground beef in a skillet until thoroughly cooked throughout and browned. Set aside.

When the vegetables are finished, add the ground beef and stir to combine. Continue cooking for another 15 minutes covered at a simmer. Serve each bowl garnished with avocado slices and fresh parsley.

Mickey Trescott is a cook and one of the bloggers behind Autoimmune Wellness. After recovering from her own struggle with both Celiac and Hashimoto’s disease, adrenal fatigue, and multiple vitamin deficiencies, Mickey started to write about her experience to share with others and help them realize they are not alone in their struggles. She is a certified Nutritional Therapy Practitioner by the Nutritional Therapy Association, and is the author of The Autoimmune Paleo Cookbook, a guide and recipe book for the autoimmune protocol, and AIP Batch Cook, a video-based batch cooking program. You also can find her on Instagram.

Looking for more AIP-compliant recipes?

This book contains over 110 elimination diet friendly recipes, including appetizers, snacks, soups, stews, salads, main dishes, and desserts. Also included are 2 4-week meal plans, shopping lists, and all the information you need to get started on your healing journey.

I’m a bit of a throw-in-what-I’ve-got gal as the bulk of my shopping is from the farmers market…so my “chili” was a bit different…but devine nonetheless. Thank you! …will be having this for breakfast every morning this week 🙂

Hi! I am getting ready to start Paleo/AIP. I haven’t met anyone else who is following the same or similar plan. Would you please share your experiences, why you are doing it, and if you are seeing positive results. If so, what are they? Thank you!!

I have been on the AIP diet for three months now. Went on it when I learned that it would be a great tool to help me with my autoimmune issues (hashimotos, lupus, RA). Only went on it to help heal my gut; however, also have lost 28 pounds in that brief period of time. I needed to lose weight.

Another benefit: I am never hungry and do not think about food every second of the day. How nice, not to be a slave to food.

I have not made this recipe, yet. But, it looks wonderful. Made the Magic Chili… that stuff is dangerously good (we all kept going back for additional helpings). Will give this recipe five stars, as I have no doubt this will be another winner.

So glad you tossed this idea out. I recently confirmed I cannot eat sweet potatoes. I tried this with white potato- but it was still a bit starchy and lost a bit in translation. I will try some squash 🙂

Thanks for your energy and effort. Just found your blog and am grateful to share this life/struggle with others. I’ve been eating this way for about 15 years, but hardcore for 2 years. This psoriatic arthritis is no joke! As much as I’ve denied it and stayed off drugs using natural means (and became a doctor trying to figure this out), I still have to be perfect on the diet and minimize stress and even now it’s bad enough to consider enbrel zzzz yuck. I just made 12 qts bone broth today and I have some burdock that I may sub for some of the sweet pot and hopefully will make one day this week after work. Blessings to you all, I pray that all our autoimmune disorders leave the vicinity and we are healthy. Then we can eat this way bc it keeps us feeling well.

Kristen – good for you for taking your health into your own hands. I know it can be rough when it doesn’t completely go our way and we have to resort to pharmaceuticals… I beat myself up for awhile about the thyroid medication that I take, but it is truly a necessity for me. Good luck to you, and let me know if the chili works with a substitution, sounds fun!

I know this was posted a few years ago, but I just wanted to check in and see if the AIP diet has helped your arthritis. I have psoriatic arthritis too and am currently on Cosentyx. I’ve tried doing the diet, but haven’t been consistent. Honestly I just find it hard to believe that a diet could cure my arthritis, but I want to. I enrolled for the SAD to AIP program with Angie Alt. Hope you’re doing better than you were when you posted this.

What a great idea. I too miss chili! I’m ok with light use of chili spices, but the beans and tomatoes aren’t great for me right now. I especially like that this is a good way for me to eat beef bone broth, which I greatly dislike.

Great recipe! I’m not super confident in the kitchen, but this was very easy, fairly quick and sooo yummy – always the best reward for trying a new recipe 🙂 Was a bit skeptical that it could hit a “chili” spot but it really does – the texture is great. And ditto, great way to get that beef broth in there! Thanks for sharing.

Alicia, Beef broth will not work for bone broth–it lacks the minerals and nutrition. Bone broth is one of the core principles of AIP and I would suggest trying to find a way to make it, or purchase it, that works for you! Most people don’t even notice it cooked in recipes like this.

I am SO excited to try this tonight. I am into my second week AIP and its been… challenging, but I have been on so many pharmaceuticals to treat my issues, and going into the second week I am actually sleeping again. So I am pushing through! Thanks so much for sharing, I can’t wait to try it!

Of course this is a great winter comfort meal, but right now it is my favorite lunch on the go for summer activities – single servings from the freezer warmed up and carried in a thermos, with a side of fresh blueberries. Loving it! 🙂

So glad I found this recipe. I worked with what I had {always do lol} and am using the slow cooker for it {to beat the summer heat}. I used some of our grassfed and grass finished London broil/top round. Cubed, seasoned, and seared it off before adding it to the slow cooker. It smells so good, I can’t wait to dive in!

I love this! We’ve been planning a chili cookoff at work since March. I was recently diagnosed with Sjogren’s Syndrome and the very same day my nutritionist told me about the AIP. I was a little bummed that I wouldn’t be able to participate in the chili cookoff. How can you make chili without tomatoes? Then I stumbled upon this recipe and decided to go for it. I entered it into the cookoff and won third place! I will use my prize (a $25 Whole Foods GC) to try out more of your recipes. Thank you so much for sharing this knowledge with us. It’s so good to know I’m not alone in this battle.

I am eating this as I write this review. This is amazing. I used lard to sauté the onion & carrots, half a submarine-sized leftover cooked sweet potato that I chopped, and some leftover grass-fed hamburger meat that I had originally made tacos for. I definitely added the cilantro at the end, and it is super yummy.

Ellen, Honestly, I don’t recommend the store-bought stuff, and in a pinch I use water or or a mixture of water and orange juice. It doesn’t turn out the same, but personally avoiding the ingredients in the commercially made stuff is that important to me.

My husband and I are gearing up to begin our AIP elimination to get to the bottom of our digestive issues (both), Hashimoto’s (me) and constant allergies (him). Most of it won’t be a big deal because we’re already coffee/dairy/gluten free, but the thing that scares me the most is losing my stevia. I make a green tea latte with stevia every morning (will use organic unsweetened coconut milk instead of sunflower milk from now on).

Is coconut sugar okay? What about date sugar? I’m afraid I’ll end up using too much honey or maple syrup to give it the sweetness I like. Same with coconut sugar, I suppose. :-s

Any suggestion you have for sweeteners would be much appreciated! Thanks for being there for us all as we stumble through this process! 🙂

Hi Val, Coconut and date sugar are fine in moderation, but you will want to use them sparingly. I think these are better solutions than the stevia–Sarah Ballantyne found in her research that it has a hormone structure and affects the endocrine function in rats. I don’t think a little coconut, honey, or maple sugar would be problematic in tea. 🙂

UPDATE: I’ve been doing the AIP for TWO months now and just enjoyed an almost PMS symptom-free month! My husband definitely noticed the difference!!!

Other improvements already appearing: 1) after being rejected for low hemoglobin in January (124)…I was able to give blood this month with my improved hemoglobin of 147! 2) my breathing has improved noticably during my running! No more feeling like I can’t get a deep enough breath and the panic that it induces. 3) I haven’t caught either of the 2 colds that my 5-yr-old daughter has brought home since January (I used to pick up most of them) 4) sleep has improved (less waking up and staying awake during the night) 5) I (almost) like liver now 6) weight hasn’t gone down, but at least I’m not gaining! This, despite an increase in the amount of fat I’m ingesting. And I am much more satisfied between meals so am snacking a lot less. I’m not overweight but would like to decrease body fat % a little. I’ve been frustrated with some weight collecting around my middle in the last 8 years (I’m 46). This, however, is a secondary concern. Health first!!!

Will be getting my blood tested soon to find out if my thyroid antibody titers are going down. Fingers crossed!!! Am also hoping to see improvement over time with my PLMD (jerky legs).

Your information and research (and recipes of course!) have made this process so much easier. I am SO grateful for your efforts! BTW…my husband bailed almost immediately. He couldn’t hack the first few days of feeling crappy. LOL! I had NO detox symptoms at all thanks, probably, to removing gluten, dairy and coffee long before I started.

Sorry for the long winded message. I’m just excited about the benefits and want to share so that others can be inspired to stick with it.

I made this last night for our chili cook off today. I have been full AIP for 6 months and have not successfully reintroduced nightshades yet. This was REALLY delicious. Everyone at work liked it too. I was worried it would be too sweet. It wasn’t at all.

I tripled the batch for a big crowd. So I had to have a strategy.

I made the stock on Tuesday afternoon through Wednesday night with oxtail, shank and soup bones. I cooked it for 24 hours with water and a bit of Braggs ACV. I then added carrots and onions for another 5 hours and refrigerated it. It turned to meat Jello; just what I wanted. 🙂

I chopped all of the veggies on Wednesday night and put in Ziploc bags.

I made the chili last night. I used the tallow that floated to the top of the stock for sauteing the veggies. The only thing I did differently was I added the salt along the way instead of all at once. Some with the onions, some with the beef and then the rest when I mixed it all together.

I tasted it last night and of course it was delicious. Today, it was even more amazing. The sweet potatoes melded with the broth and beef to give it a great chili texture and mouth feel. The carrots give a texture reminiscent of beans.

I asked for honest opinions at work today. I wasn’t really sure at this stage if I loved it just because my choices were limited or because it was awesome. i just knew I loved it. My colleagues, all traditional chili eaters agreed it was delicious.

Thank you for this recipe and while I am here, your PDFs of the AIP Diet really made it much easier for me and my family to understand what was safe to eat and what to avoid. I couldn’t have done it without you. AIP helped me with a lot of symptoms.

Kristy, Thank you!! I am so happy you and your friends enjoyed it. I work really hard to make food that everyone, not just those of us who need to eat restricted will enjoy. I’ve got another chili recipe in the works that is a variation on this one that you are sure to love.

[…] of the recipes I get the most comments and praise about on this site is my AIP Carrot and Sweet Potato “Chili”. Most people love it because the ingredients are simple, its easy to make, and it tastes amazing! […]

Tried this tonight and loved it! Looking forward to leftovers tomorrow. I wanted you to know that even though I already have your e-book cookbook, I ordered a copy of your printed book today. I wanted to support you to say thanks for all you do for so many of us. I love all of your recipes and advise. THANK YOU!!!

I made this for the first time tonight (Day #2 of AIP for me). When my husband asked me what was for supper, I showed him the recipe. He promptly turned up his nose and said he’d make his own supper. Well, he ended up eating 2 bowls full when I finished cooking. 🙂

This was delicious! I made it exactly to the recipe. I am just starting my journey with AIP and am grateful for the information and recipes on your website. I was wondering if it is ok to drink tea on this diet?

Maybe my taste buds are dull, or this batch of chicken broth wasn’t as good as usual, but to me this soup needed a lot more seasoning to make it truly yummy. I started randomly pulling stuff out of the cupboard. I added some ACV, some dried basil and I think summer savory, just going kind of by smell as to what seemed like it could work well. The absolute best addition I made was ground ginger. I really liked how that brightened it up substantially! Now I’m happy to eat this soup all week. If you’re like me and like highly seasoned food, give adding some ginger a try!

Jenny, it should have a pretty thick texture-are you sure you measured properly when adding the vegetables and liquids? If yes, then next time add less broth or more veggies to make it less soup-like. 🙂

Help! I know, I am a baby. I get it, I accept it… I am terrified of bones and just moved and do not know anyone that will make me bone broth here just yet (as a side note If you live in Atlanta you can earn good money off of me :)). Will this work with filtered water instead of bone broth?

I just made this today and it was super yummy! I’ve been trying to find good recipes to use my bone broth (I’m not a fan of drinking it straight) and this one is my favorite so far! Love your recipes, they keep me sane and satisfied while on aip, and can’t wait to get my hands on your cookbook 🙂

[…] of my go to recipes with autoimmune paleo (AIP) is Carrot and Sweet Potato “Chili” from autoimmune-paleo.com. I make a big batch and freeze it in portion sizes. It is really easy to heat and makes a great […]

Jennifer, You can certainly make it without garlic and onion, but it will lose some flavor. Have you tried using asafoetida powder to replace onion? I haven’t used it myself, but others have said that it imparts a similar flavor. Good luck!

Hi Mickey, Thanks for the recipe. I’ve been making a sweet potato chili for a couple winters now and it is the best, isn’t it!? (eating it now as I type!) I was really surprised you didn’t add cumin, as that IS what chili is all about for me. But, reading into your comments, it seems something to do with seeds? Is that correct?

I made this with organic store bought chicken stock, and it was fine. (my first bone broth is this fall’s project)

Mickey is this recipe from your cookbook? It was very good! I have to say I do miss Cumin because it adds so much flavor, but maybe I can introduce later! I did a sped up version of this. I happened to have some fried sweet potatoes left over so i cut the cooking time down since they just needed to be warmed. The carrots were a bit al dente but still yummy! I think I need to add your cookbook to my birthday wish list!

I enjoyed this recipe a lot. Next time I’ll make my carrots smaller dices and I may mash the sweet potatoes. Loving the 2 week plan and the recipes on the blog. I should get my book from Amazon tomorrow!

Made this yesterday using grass-fed buffalo and it was awesome (and really hit the chili craving, too). So awesome, in fact, that I ate it for breakfast, lunch, AND dinner today. Thanks for sharing the recipe, Mickey!

I noticed in a few recipes that require cooked ground beef that you don’t mention if the fat should be drained first before adding it (in this case to the chili). Is that because it just goes without saying that it should be drained, or do you purposely leave out that step because it should be added to the dish(s)? Thank you!

[…] likes to make. Little did I know that the recipe was a Mickey Trescott creation! She calls it AIP carrot and sweet potato “chili” and it is absolutely delicious. You can follow the link to the recipe on her […]

Debbie, I find that freshly made, it can sometimes be a little watery, but the next day it thickens up just fine. If you want to make it even thicker, try adding a can of pumpkin puree, or some thinned root veggie puree.

[…] freezer these days. I try to make it once a week, using it as the base for soups like this one and this one. I freeze the excess (if I have any) to keep on hand in case we are sick. It’s an excellent […]

Everyone in our family loved this one–ages 3 to 44. I had to kind of force myself to stop eating this, and it is so beautiful, I sent dinner photos to people. Thank you so much for posting these recipes.

Made this for dinner and everyone loved it! I used the Instant Pot, I saw someone earlier was asking about it. I used the Saute setting and browned the meat, then added all the veggies and let those cook some on Saute as well. Added the seasonings and broth and then closed it and set it to the chili setting. It sat warm for another 30 minutes after that. It was very delicious, didn’t get much browning on the veggies, but that’s ok, making it one pot was worth it.

This recipe looks delish! But what I really want to know is, how are people tolerating garlic and onions?! 🙁 I cannot eat them without indigestion and major bloat. I had SIBO two years ago, but no longer, and I still cannot eat garlic and onions for some reason.

Hi Michelle! Most people don’t have issues with garlic and onions – your SIBO history makes me wonder if you really eradicated it? I would have a chat with your doctor about this, as many people are able to tolerate small quantities of these foods after a successful treatment.

Wow. I just made this and it is seriously good. And simple. I admit – I really hate that I can’t have nightshades! I find it more difficult to avoid than anything else on AIP, but I just cannot have them. Recipes like this remind me that there are so many other alternatives that are so much better for me! Thank you for such a great recipe… keep them coming!

Split the recipe because it was only for me.. used 1 white sweet potatoe (white less sweet) and a turnip. Also added quite a bit of zucchini and spinach leaves, as I like food more savory. Delicious recipe all around. Thanks!

I want to thank you for posting these wonderful recipes for us to partake in, how very sweet of you! I made your “chili” tonight for supper and was pleasantly surprised at how hearty and fulfilling it was.. not even as next day chili, either! I just threw in some greens and a golden beet because I had them on hand. Delicious!

This is one of my favorite AIP recipes! I used to make it all the time, and I am just now returning to an AIP diet after having my 2nd child 3 months ago. I am planning on making this today! Had anybody ever tried this in a pressure cooker?

I am very new to AIP, just recently being diagnosed with hashimotos and celiacs. For many years I was a a vegetarian, and only in the past year or so started eating chicken and turkey. I’m still struggling to get on board with red meats. Can I substitute ground turkey and chicken bone broth for this recipe? And is it going to be tough to follow AIP and avoid red meats?

Hey Tanis! Having come from a Vegan diet myself, I totally understand (and recommend!) taking it slow. Most recipes calling for ground beef, like this one, will also work with ground poultry, it just might not have as much fat – I might add some coconut oil to make up the difference. Good luck!

Made this tonight. Turned out well – and – it is good. Relieved! On strict AIP for 6.5 months and the recipes can sometimes be a challenge for me… meaning I spend a lot of time cooking and then I don’t like what I made. Thank you!

This soup is amazing! I added bacon and butternut squash and it was even better… then the next time I made it, I swapped the beef for shredded chicken, and WOW!! It freezes great and there are so many options for modification that it has become my winter go-to 🙂

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With five autoimmune diseases between them, Mickey and Angie found their path to better health with the Autoimmune Protocol. Now it’s their mission to share that approach with nourishing recipes, practical resources, and community connections.LEARN MORE>

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